Bloomberg
UK tech mogul Lynch beats HP fraud case in stunning US loss

Rachel Graf
Fri, Jun 7, 2024, 3:06 AM EDT • 4 min read

(Bloomberg) — In a staggering loss for US prosecutors, a jury found UK tech tycoon Mike Lynch not guilty of criminal charges that he pulled off Silicon Valley’s biggest-ever fraud 13 years ago by duping Hewlett Packard Co. into buying his software startup for $11 billion.

Lynch’s victory in San Francisco federal court came after he lost a civil trial in London in 2022 over allegations that he and Autonomy Corp.’s former finance chief used accounting tricks to inflate the company’s revenue ahead of its 2011 sale. Hewlett Packard is seeking $4 billion in damages, though the UK judge has said he’ll likely award “substantially less.”

Thursday’s outcome amounts to a remarkable redemption for Lynch, who has argued for years that he was scapegoated for the ill-fated acquisition of Autonomy by one of the oldest US tech companies.

Lynch hugged his lawyer and wiped his eyes after the verdict was read as some people in the courtroom were audibly crying. US District Judge Charles Breyer said he will issue an order saying Lynch is free to leave the San Francisco residence where he’s been under around-the-clock supervision by hired security guards after he was extradited from the UK last year.

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